Approximately ten percent of all U.S. citizens live in California. But if you live in Northern California, you should be all too familiar with the wildfires occurring right now. The main cause of these widespread fires is global warming. What many do not know, though, is that because of these wildfires, air pollution is also going up. Paradise - a small town in Northern California - was struck especially hard by these fires. 85 deaths occurred and many buildings were damaged, and air pollution started going up in this town. Because of this, the government prompted health warnings to people in that area. In San Francisco, hundreds of miles south of Paradise, fine particulate pollution reached almost 200 micrograms per cubic meter. Businesses had to be closed, in addition to schools, and this was happening for at least 11 days. Other cities, such as Sacramento, are also having similar pollution problems.
What's more, many people cannot prevent these terrible events from happening. Rather, it is up to the government to enact policies to combat these problems. The California governor believes something should be done, fortunately. He has declared a state emergency and activated the State Operations Center, the facility responsible for carrying out emergency preparedness and management, to its highest level. Now, although we still have a long way to go, steps are being taken in the right direction towards combating this global problem.
Map of the United States Detailing air pollution levels. Provided by Berkeley Earth
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